When Imitation Crosses the Line
While imitation may be the sincerest form of flattery, the realization that someone has actually copied our work tends to bring out emotions that are less than flattering.
When you spend hours of your precious time on a project only to be blatantly ripped off and watch someone else benefit or even profit from your labor, it can be difficult to hold your temper.
So how do we, in turn, take out inspiration and get ideas from others without being a carbon copy of the original?
Generally speaking, there is an agreement among most psychologists that there really aren’t any truly original thoughts. Our thoughts are based on education and experience and no one lives in a vacuum.
Having said that, our uniqueness can bring a new look to old ideas. Here’s a few ideas on how to get that done.
Choose Multiple Muses
The fact is, the fewer your sources of inspiration, the greater your chances are of appearing to be a copycat. If you only listen to Vivaldi, your own compositions will sound just like Vivaldi. If you only read Danielle Steele, no one will ever compare your books to those of Hemingway.
Whatever it is you’re trying to do, pull ideas from as many masters as possible. You’ll quickly develop your own personal style.
Paying Homage
This is something that we’ve all seen done in films. It’s also quite commonly heard in music, particularly Jazz. Jazz musicians learn the craft of improvisation by studying the solos of the masters, note for note. You’ll hear not only their own signature riffs in solos, you’ll also hear signature riffs from the legends.
In films, it’s usually the director that’s paying tribute to a mentor or influence. A scene in the movie may be a variation on an old classic. Director Brian DePalma is often heavily criticized for his heavy handed “borrowing” from Alfred Hitchcock. If you’re familiar with the movies of Alfred Hitchcock, you can see the similarities in DePalma’s movies. Some call it a tribute while others call it copying. For us, we can at least start to understand that there’s a line of copying that can’t be crossed without facing criticism.
You may have seen an art student sitting in a museum, recreating a master’s work.
A deep understanding of how creators work allows you to showcase their influence which is a step in developing your own identity.
Abstract Ideas
Quite often, you’ll find that a simple color scheme or layout works well for you and that’s okay.
I designed a website for a friend. She sent me a link to a site and told me she wanted her site to be just like that.
I realized that the design really didn’t work for her business. I explained that it wasn’t in her best interest to have a similar looking site as it diluted her brand.
I gave her a homework assignment – she had to find five different sites that she liked and be able to explain why.
By the time we went through her content, layout, and a color scheme that complemented her business cards, she had a site unique to her brand and was easy for visitors to navigate.
Study the past, bring your own personality and experiences to the project and compliment the masters.
You’ll find that people will want to start emulating you and that’s a much more comfortable place to be than waking up every morning dreading the next Cease and Desist email in your inbox.
Finding the Feeling
Better yet is to be inspired by themes, feelings, and tones. Be inspired by abstract concepts rather than by concrete choices. A great example of this might be the colors on a website or at a wedding. Don’t lift the color choices directly, but consider choosing contrasting colors in the same vein as your inspiration, or ‘cool’ colors, or ‘warm’ colors.
Likewise, if you went to a wedding you found was very lighthearted and fun, as opposed to formal and serious, then you can try and emulate that tone without taking anything directly from your inspiration.
Create something that feels like the inspiration, rather than something that looks like the inspiration.
Inspiration is all about observation and feeling. Learn what makes a certain creation appeal to you and you’ll start to find your own voice.
